With a jerk on my elbow, Rachel aimed me to the right, leaving the crowd behind and circling to the back of the fun house. She dragged me through a maze of back hallways until she stopped behind a row of mirrors.
“Here,” she said and shoved the note into my hands. “Stick it in your pocket.”
While I complied, she searched around, likely needing to confirm that we were alone so she could kill without an audience. Keeping her gun trained on me and eyes glancing at me every few seconds, she strolled to a far corner.
I let my gaze dart about the room. From the other side of the wide space, I spotted Briny as he entered. I stifled the desire to cry out with joy and flashed my eyes in Rachel’s direction.
Briny, the smartest pickle in all the land, slipped behind a wall.
Rachel sauntered toward me as if she were strolling through the park, not coming back to murder me. “Perfect. We’re alone. Sit down, and we’ll make this quick.”
As she fixed the gun on my chest, I panicked. What could make her stop before she killed again? She felt alone, abandoned by Bud. But she still had children. That’s it. “Think of your children, Rachel. You don’t want them to have to live with the fact that you killed me, do you?”
She appeared to ponder my question as her eyes focused more than they had since she arrived, and her face softened a bit. I risked a quick look at Briny’s hiding space. I needed to distract Rachel so he could jump out and save the day.
I opened my mouth to talk when suddenly she shook her head as if clearing out a vision and yelled, “I said sit!” She jerked the gun.
I slowly slid to the floor. Rachel, eyes fixed on me, didn’t see Briny hurtle from his hiding place. He crashed his pickled head into Rachel like a ball into bowling pins. Rachel shot into the air. Her arm hit the wall, and the gun went flying.
The pair tussled. I jumped to my feet and retrieved the gun. The sight of a giant pickle fighting with Rachel was enjoyable, and I wanted to let them duke it out. With a sudden surge, Briny’s head flew off. He—what?—she could get hurt.
“Enough, Rachel,” I yelled and pointed the gun at her. “I have the gun.”
My voice cut through their struggle, and they stopped wrestling. Briny climbed on top of Rachel and held up her arm like a victor. I stared at the new Briny. Atop a long neck flowed blond—almost white hair, a stunning face with an aquiline nose, and a big grin on ruby red lips.
“Do I know you?” I asked, though I was certain I’d never before seen this Marilyn Monroe look-alike.
She pushed to her feet and came my way in a swish of the soft Briny body. “Sort of. We’ve talked a few times.”
My mouth dropped open. I recognized the voice. “Weed Whacker?” I asked.
She nodded. “When I heard the real Briny broke his leg and then the show about the killer, I figured you might need my help.”
Open-mouthed, I stared at the woman who I thought was a crazy stalker. I laughed, almost uncontrollable peals. As Martha Stewart would say in this case, a stalker was a good thing.
Weed Whacker stuck out her slender fingers. “My real name is Daisy.”
I reached out to shake, and Rachel made a break for the door. She disappeared around a corner.
“No,” I yelled and ran after her.
At the corner, I slammed into Adam and tottered. Like a Weeble, I wobbled but I didn’t fall down, thanks to Adam’s strong grip.
“Rachel! She’s getting away.” I screamed in his face but he held me tight.
“Nah, she’s right here.” Mitch rounded the corner with Rachel locked in his arms.
Adam gently removed the gun from my hand and gave it to Mitch.
Finger in the trigger ring, he held out the weapon to an officer who rushed into the room. “Bag it and get the equipment in here to process the scene.”
Adam ran his hands over my shoulders and looked me over from head to toe. Apparently satisfied with what he saw, he pulled me into a fierce hug.
“Are you okay?” he whispered, his breath tickling the hairs by my ear.
He released me enough to breathe, and I stepped back, letting my fear whoosh out with each breath. “How did you find us?” I asked, my voice shaky.
His eyes turned sheepish. “I thought you might not call Lawson right away, so I did. He met me at your booth. When I found the booth empty, I knew you were in trouble. As we were trying to figure out where you were, Mr. T kept saying, ‘Briny! Briny!’ So we went into the crowd and asked people if they’d seen where Briny went. That led us here.” He turned to Mitch. “Now would be a good time to apologize for what you put Paige through.”
“Nothing to apologize for. Was just doing my job.” He snapped cuffs onto Rachel’s wrists.
I looked at the man who’d caused me so many problems. “I don’t get it, Mitch. You were so bent on arresting me yesterday. Why didn’t you?”
“After you left last night, Charlie Sweeny came in and told me about Picklemann’s affair with Stacey. Said he was leaving this little lady. Later that night, Picklemann’s financial information finally came in. Once I knew Picklemann stiffed Rachel, I figured she might have more cause for murder than you, but we couldn’t find her. Have her now, though.”
Rachel flashed a look of hatred my way.
I ignored her glare and faced Mitch. “So the affair was the secret Charlie threatened Bud with on the day he died?”
Mitch shook his head. “Charlie only found out about the affair yesterday.”
“Really?” I glanced at Adam to see if he’d heard this news, but his wide-open eyes told me he hadn’t. “So how did Charlie find out something none of us could figure out?”
Mitch’s gaze settled on Rachel. “Charlie was delivering a prescription for anxiety medicine to Rachel and found her already a little loopy. He thought she was so distraught over losing Picklemann that she might accidentally overdose. So he told her he’d come back the next day and bring her the pills.”
Rachel growled in a low, almost guttural sound. “That man doesn’t know how to mind his own business.” She paused and let her lips curl in a snarl. “I couldn’t let Charlie leave with my pills—I needed them. So I told him about the affair and that I wouldn’t do myself in over that cheating weasel of a husband.” She puffed up her chest. “But as much as I wanted to, I didn’t tell him about killing Bud. I knew if I did, Charlie would never leave the pills with me.”
“Instead he came straight to the station to tell me about the affair.” Mitch tugged on Rachel’s cuffs and handed her off to another officer. “Take her to the station.”
Casting a final evil glare, Rachel was led away.
“So what was this secret Charlie was keeping about Bud?” I asked Mitch.
“I’m not at liberty to share that,” he answered.
I rolled my eyes so hard, I was surprised they didn’t do a full loop. “Oh, come on. You have to tell me.”
“All I can say is it has to do with a prescription Charlie dispensed for Picklemann. A prescription that Picklemann wouldn’t want people in town to know about.”
“Bud really didn’t know people, did he? Charlie might be a bear, but he’s ethical. He’d never have told anyone about this.”
“No, but he wanted Picklemann to believe he would so he would quit pestering him about the Leever deal.”
“And that’s what they were arguing about in the park,” Adam said.
“Yes and at the church, too. Picklemann wanted one last score so he could leave town with Stacey and live in style.” Mitch glanced at his men. “Now if you don’t have any other questions I have work to do.”
“No further questions,” I said and slipped my hand through the crook of Adam’s arm.
“Fine. You folks need to step aside while we process this scene,” Mitch said. “I’ll want a more detailed statement about what when down here before you’re free to go.”
Adam clamped his hand on mine and moved us out of the way.
“Guess what?” he asked as he rele
ased my arm and pulled me into an embrace. “I’m no longer your lawyer.” He stared into my eyes then settled his lips over mine for our first kiss.
Umm, nice. I could do this all day. Loud kissing sounds came from a few feet away.
Adam and I broke apart and peered at Weed Whacker, who was grinning and making the silly noises.
“This is Weed Whacker,” I said to Adam. “She’s one of my favorite callers from my radio show.”
“About that,” Weed Whacker said, her eyes suddenly going all serious. “Earl and I made up, and he’s back home. Totally understood my mistake once I explained it. Now he’s questioning my next plan. Won’t let me get started on it until he hears directly from you. I wanted to implement that deadheading technique you told us about, but I can’t seem to figure out where to get those heads.”
I laughed. “That’ll have to wait until Monday’s show.” I pulled Adam closer. “I have something far more pressing to do right now.”
Reader Questions:
1. Paige thinks of people as plants she grows in her gardens and treats them accordingly. She does this in a harmless manner, but often in life we attach labels to people the minute we meet them Have you labeled someone and then later discovered you were wrong?
How damaging can it be to label others and what can you do to keep from making snap decisions about other people?
When Paige was younger and lost both of her parents, she blamed God for that loss and stopped trusting in him to take care of her. When have you stopped trusting in God or maybe never fully trusted Him?
Paige not only doesn’t trust God, but she believes that she has to control her life and is resolved to do anything she can to prevent the heartache she faced at the loss of her parents. In what areas of your life were you hurt or disappointed and then decided to rely on yourself to never let this happen again?
In Nipped in the Bud, Paige is faced with challenge after challenge, some seemingly insurmountable. Her first reaction is to rely on herself to get through the problem. What kind of trouble does Paige find herself in as a result of depending on herself?
How would God have wanted Paige to handle her disappointments and pain?
Paige is always in a rush to solve her own problems, never stopping to see if God is with her. When have you rushed ahead?
How has that worked for you?
Looking back, how would it have been easier if you’d been still and waited for God?
When life gets too tough for Paige, she considers running and hiding from her problems. If you’ve run from painful issues in the past, how could you learn to stand firm and face your issue?
When Paige finally understands that letting God direct her life is the right thing to do, she still resists putting her trust in him. When have you known the right thing to do and then done the opposite? What were the consequences of that decision?
What problem are you facing today, that if you take the time to see God at work and find his comforting presence that the problem will seem less daunting?
What three things could you do today to trust God more?
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About Spyglass Lane
Spyglass Lane Mysteries is a collection of Christian cozy mysteries—modern-day whodunnits with colorful characters and plenty of wholesome romance.
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